Newsletters Total Records:  35 01/09/2005  TENANT'S DEPOSIT PROGRESS TENANT'S DEPOSIT PROGRESS The government have advertised in the European Journal to seek providers for Tenancy Deposit Schemes (TDS) in accordance with the Housing Act 2004 provisions to safeguard tenants’ deposits. The Housing Act 2004 provides a legislative framework for the government to introduce mandatory control of tenants’ deposit money. It is estimated that there is £740 million worth of tenants’ deposit money held by landlords and agents and this legislation is designed to protect that money. Once the legislation comes into force it will be a legal requirement that landlords and agents have deposit money covered by one of the approved schemes. The advert is to find scheme providers who might become the approved schemes. The proposals for TDS were not in the original draft of the Housing Act 2004 but were introduced during its transition through parliament. This has happened despite the Government originally deciding not to proceed with the Independent Housing Ombudsman trial scheme as it was not considered cost effective (it was estimated it might save £20 million in tenants’ money but cost £19 million to run). As the clauses for the TDS were added later, it was always expected that the introduction would be later than this autumn, the target for many of the other private rented sector provisions. The advert in the European Journal envisages the new scheme starting from 1st October 2006, which is slightly later than was anticipated (it had been anticipated it would be fully functional by July 2006). The advert talks about one custodial scheme (contract number 149115-2005) and one or more insurance based schemes (contract number 149114-2005). If there is only one custodial scheme, then landlords or agents who do not use the insurance option will have no choice about which scheme to use and how competitive it is to attract business. A consultation about TDS is due to be put out in October 2005 dealing with the issues the secondary legislation has to consider. The Government commissioned a consulting firm, PKF, to do a scoping study to provide information about the future schemes. 01/08/2005  HOUSING HEALTH & SAFETY RATING SYSTEMS - The Key Changes HOUSING HEALTH & SAFETY RATING SYSTEMS - The Key Changes Part one of the Housing Act 2004 introduces a new way of assessing the fitness of a property for human habitation. One of the stated intents of the Housing Act 2004 is to improve the standard of properties. Landlords with property in poor condition are going to find an increasing focus on improving the standard. The “old” system (still currently valid, but due to be replaced in the autumn) comes from the Housing Act 1985 with section 604 being key to inspecting properties; the Act specifies 9 areas where inadequate facilities could cause a property to be considered “not fit for human habitation”. Under the new 2004 Act, most of the old rules will be disposed of and Environmental Health Officers will have to learn a very new system. The bulk of the focus of the old system was looking at features of the property (for example, lack of ventilation, damp etc). The new system has greater emphasis on the effects of things on the health and safety of the occupier. The new Housing Health and Safety Rating Scheme (HHSRS), when introduced, will completely replace the old scheme with significant changes. Firstly, and perhaps most notably from the point of view of the local authority, they will have 29 areas to consider instead of the current 9. For example, the new scheme includes “noise” as one of the areas for consideration. There is nothing “structurally” wrong with a property if it happens to be noisy, and under the old scheme, little could be done. Under the new scheme, since excessive noise could be detrimental to the health of an occupier, the scheme will now consider it. This demonstrates the change in focus from “property” based to “effect on occupier” based. It also means that many things that were outside the concern of the old scheme will be considered. Another example, based on a previous case, was where no action could be taken in a situation where a toilet had no wash hand basin and the occupier had to walk across the kitchen to use the wash hand basin in the bathroom. The Environmental Health Officers felt that occupiers might use the kitchen sink, instead of the bathroom and this might be a health hazard. Under the old rules it was held not to be within the remit of the rules and “how the occupier used the property” was not the concern, the facility had been provided. Under the new rules, since there might be a “risk” of the kitchen sink being used and such use might constitute a health hazard, enforcement action would be a possibility. Factsheet two from the ODPM lists the 29 areas and this can be found by searching for “factsheet 2” on the ODPM website (www.odpm.gov.uk). 01/07/2005  NEW COUNCIL POWERS NEW COUNCIL POWERS As part of the preparation for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) licensing schemes local authorities have been given new powers to use information currently held to assess and identify properties that might be HMO’s and that might need licensing in the future. Commencement order 1451 brought into force from 6th June certain changes in the right to buy rules (only affecting council tenants) and changes affecting the private rented sector from 15th June. These changes are the first moves towards full implementation of the various licensing schemes in the act. The full text of the commencement order is available at: http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2005/20051451.htm It is section 237, introduced by this commencement order, that allows the use of information held for other purposes to be used. The section says 237 Use of information obtained for certain other statutory purposes (1) A local housing authority may use any information to which this section applies — (a) for any purpose connected with the exercise of any of the authority’s functions under any of Parts 1 to 4 in relation to any premises, or (b) for the purpose of investigating whether any offence has been committed under any of those Parts in relation to any premises. (2) This section applies to any information which has been obtained by the authority in the exercise of functions under— (a) section 134 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c.5) (housing benefit), or (b) Part 1 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (c.14) (council tax) This will allow records held for the purpose of Housing Benefit or Council Tax to be used to locate property that has multiple claimants and could therefore be an HMO. The reference to Parts 1-4 include using this information for the new Housing Health and Safety Rating System (condition of the property), mandatory licensing and additional licensing of HMOs, selective licensing of other accommodation and for use in management orders and working with empty dwellings (all about how a property is run).The purpose is to enable local authorities to start looking at properties in their area and planning which properties are likely to need licensing etc. If a property has 5 council tax or housing benefit records, then the local authority may use this information to start checking if the house may need licensing under the new regimes which are due in from October. 01/05/2005  CONDENSING BOILERS CONDENSING BOILERS Condensing Boiler Installation Assessment Procedure - (Building Regulations Part L1) From 01 April 2005, Part L1 of the Building Regulations will require gas and oil boilers installed in new and existing dwellings to be condensing types, with a SEDBUK efficiency in band A or B, unless there are exceptional circumstances that make this impractical or too costly. For new or replacement boilers in existing dwellings, it will be necessary to carry out the assessment and complete the form to see if the particular case is a permitted exception, and hence whether a non-condensing boiler may be installed instead of a condensing boiler. A correctly completed form may be used as evidence that it is permissible to install a non-condensing boiler. A form is not required when a condensing boiler is fitted. Completed forms must be made available to: The householder, AND EITHER the building control body, if you have elected to notify the work to them, OR retained by the Approved Competent Person and you certify work done yourself. Gas-fired boilers installed after 1 April 2005, and oil-fired boilers installed after 1 April 2007, must be condensing boilers, whether they are replacements or new installations. This is a requirement of the Building Regulations for England & Wales, Part L1 (Conservation of Fuel and Power). In exceptional circumstances it is permissible to install a non-condensing boiler instead of a condensing boiler, provided that an assessment of the property by a competent person confirms that the additional cost of installing a condensing boiler is exceptionally high. The assessor must identify the lowest additional cost for an installation anywhere in the building, irrespective of the boiler position chosen by the owner. When the boiler is fitted, whether it is a condensing or non-condensing boiler, it need not be in the position shown on the assessment form. The completed assessment form should be retained as evidence of compliance with the Building Regulations. It may be required when the house is sold. For more information and a copy of the assessment form see the Building Regulations section of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website at www.odpm.gov.uk 01/02/2005  ELECTRICAL SAFETY AND THE NEW PART P ELECTRICAL SAFETY AND THE NEW PART P The new electrical safety regulations came into force on 1 January 2005. These relate to changes in the Building Regulations regarding new electrical fixed wiring installations and repair work, and operate independently of the existing regulations for regular safety checks. There are no changes in these existing requirements for electrical safety checks under the (current) 1994 electrical safety regulations. The New Part P From 1 January 2005 all electrical work in dwellings will need to comply with Part P requirements and; (i) either be notified to local authority building control, who, on payment of a fee, will check that the work complies with the relevant safety regulations; (ii) or be carried out by persons who are Government-approved electrician competent to do the work. (Self-Certified Electrician) Small jobs such as replacing a socket-outlet or a light switch on an existing circuit will not need to be notified to a building control body, although there will be some exceptions for high risk areas such as kitchens and bathrooms. All work that involves adding a new circuit to a dwelling will need to be either notified to building control, who will then inspect the work, or carried out by a competent person who is registered with a Part P Self-Certification Scheme. Persons registered with Part P Self-Certification Schemes will be fully qualified electrical contractors with the ability to thoroughly check a circuit for safety. They will be able to issue Building Regulations certificates of compliance. Most jobs carried out by DIY’ers will be small jobs that do not need to be notified to building control, but Government guidance states that they should still be checked by a competent electrician. Exempt Small jobs For the purposes of the notification requirement, certain small jobs are exempt from the regulations: o Replacing accessories such as socket outlets, control switches and ceiling roses. o Replacing the cable for a single circuit only, where damaged, for example, by fire, rodent, or impact, re-fixing or replacing the enclosures of existing installation components, providing mechanical protection to existing fixed installations. Also exempt is work that is not in a kitchen or special location* and does not involve a special installation and consists of: o Adding lighting points to an existing circuit o Adding socket-outlets and fused spurs to an existing ring or radial circuit o Installing or upgrading main or supplementary equipment bonding *Special locations include potentially hazardous areas such as locations containing a bathtub, or shower basin December 2004 - Author Nick Le-Grys Ask not what you can do for your Government, rather what they’re going to do to you!! Major changes coming soon, which will affect all landlords! What is proposed for deposits of all assured shorthold tenancies? All landlords will have to join an authorised tenancy deposit scheme whose rules will apply for deposits for assured shorthold tenancies. Two forms of tenancy deposit scheme are envisaged: a custodial scheme and an insurance scheme. What will a landlord have to do? Within 14 days of receiving a deposit from a tenant the landlord will have to: (1) Give the tenant (or whoever paid the tenancy deposit on their behalf) information about the deposit scheme which he is using (2) Comply with the initial requirements of the scheme which they are using and tell the tenant (or the person who paid the deposit) what they have done to comply with the requirements (3) Give the tenant (or whoever paid the deposit) information about the law relating to tenancy deposits. Under separate regulations there is likely to be a form developed which will hold all this information and which landlords will have to use with their tenants. What happens if I don’t comply? If the tenant (or the person who paid their deposit) does not believe that the landlord is complying with an authorised scheme they can apply to the county court. They can also take this course of action if the landlord tells the tenant that he is complying with a scheme’s requirements but the scheme’s administrator has not been able to give confirmation of this to the tenant. If the court agrees with the tenant it can order the person holding the deposit to repay it to the tenant, or pay it into a custodial deposit scheme, within 14 days of the court decision. The court must also order the landlord to pay the tenant 3 times the deposit amount as a penalty. Furthermore a landlord is not allowed to serve a section 21 notice if he has not complied with the requirements of complying with a scheme or giving the tenant information about the scheme and the law relating to deposits. How does a custodial deposit scheme work? At the start of the tenancy the landlord will receive the deposit and will have to pay an equal sum into an account under the scheme. The money is kept in that account until it is paid at the end of the tenancy to a combination of landlord and tenant. No other money is to be kept in the account and the money is not to be used to fund the deposit scheme. However, the interest on such amounts may be kept by the administrator. Either the landlord or tenant can apply “at any time after the tenancy has ended” for the deposit to be returned to them. (There is no specification of when the tenancy is considered to have ended.) If both parties have agreed on how the deposit should be split the administrator of the scheme has to pay out the agreed amounts within 10 days of receiving the request. If the case is subject to a court decision on how the money should be split (and any appeals have been heard and decided) the scheme administrator has to pay out within 10 days of receiving notification of the court decision. How will an insurance scheme work? Under an insurance scheme when the landlord receives the deposit at the start of the tenancy he can keep it on the basis that at the end of the tenancy an amount agreed between tenant and landlord will be paid to the tenant. At the end of the tenancy, if the tenant has requested the repayment of part or all of a deposit and the landlord has not paid it back within 10 days of the request being made, the tenant can approach the scheme administrator. The landlord will then be required to pay the disputed amount into an account within 10 days of receiving notice from the administrator. Once the tenant and landlord have agreed how the disputed amount should be split, or once a court has done so for them, they can notify the scheme administrator and the money owing to the tenant has to be paid out to him within 10 days. The balance of the money in the account should then be repaid to the landlord. If it has been decided (either by a court or by landlord and tenant) that the tenant is owed more than the disputed amount held in the account, the administrator should pay the tenant and then pursue the landlord for reimbursement. The landlord has to comply within 10 days of receiving notice from the scheme administrator. If he fails to do so then the scheme’s insurance will pay out. Landlords who belong to an insurance scheme may have to pay admin fees and a contribution towards insurance premiums. If a landlord is a member of an insurance scheme his membership may be terminated if he fails to reimburse the administrator for any money they pay out. The insurance scheme will also have to have safeguards in place to prevent a tenant recovering a deposit twice –from the landlord at the same time as the scheme. If this happens then the administrator can seek to recover payments from the tenant. Housing Benefit From 2005-6 Housing Benefit will no longer be able to be paid to the landlord, it will instead be paid into the tenants’ bank account with all other benefits. The landlord will then have to collect it from the tenant. Good luck!! IBC Landlord Seminar: Ipswich Borough Council will be holding another seminar for landlords to explain all the new rules and regulations, which are being implemented over the next two years. Unfortunately, as yet, IBC have not fully deciphered the entire forthcoming legislature, and how it affects landlords, but once they do the Seminar date will be posted. First Prev   1234567of 7  Next Last